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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. face — to point toward
  3. march — music
  4. swing — music
  5. track — a song
  6. track — a path
  7. bass — the fish
  8. field — farmland
  9. field — for sport
  10. field — a subject
  11. track — to keep track
  12. face — to confront
  13. toast — bread
  14. march — the month
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. lean — thin
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. bass — low music
  19. march — the month
  20. lean — to bend
  21. swing — in golf
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. swing — to play on
  24. face — part of the head

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com